Carbon dioxide laser surgery may reduce wrinkles

Scientists at the University of Michigan believe that carbon dioxide laser resurfacing could provide an effective long-term treatment for wrinkles following a study involving 47 patients.

The procedure involves a carbon dioxide laser which vaporises water molecules inside and outside cells, damaging the surrounding tissue and prompting the skin to produce more collagen protein which fills in the wrinkles.

Volunteers underwent carbon dioxide laser resurfacing on their entire face and analysis revealed that their facial wrinkles improved by an average of 45 per cent.

Publishing their findings in the Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery, the researchers wrote: "The efficacy of treating facial rhytids [wrinkles] with the carbon dioxide laser is well established, and the short- and long-term utility of the carbon dioxide laser in treating solar facial ageing has previously been documented.

"Our results verify those of previous studies that found that carbon dioxide laser resurfacing leads to long-term improvement in facial rhytidosism," they concluded.

Writing in an accompanying comment, Dr Paul Carnoil of New Jersey described carbon dioxide laser resurfacing as the "gold standard"